2022 Kia EV6 GT-Line Review – This EV Future Is One We Want

A younger, less informed version of myself was a bit scared that once EVs took over the market, we’d all be sentenced to driving boring machines that silently whisked us from place to place but offered no soul, no character, no fun.

Thankfully, I’ve been disabused of that notion, in large part due to automakers still employing folks that are willing to design good-looking EVs that are fun to drive. Ford’s Mustang Mach-E and Hyundai’s Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 6 are just three examples.

Here’s another one, one that shares its platform, batteries, and electric motors with the Ioniq 5 – the 2022 Kia EV6 GT-Line. It has style that turns heads (in a good way) and it’s fun to drive. EVs don’t have to be commuting snooze-mobiles.

I’ve already raved about the high-zoot EV6 GT, and while the GT-Line doesn’t match that trim in terms of pure performance, it’s still a blast to drive around town – yet it also can settle down into quiet commuting just fine.

Underneath it all are dual electric motors front and rear that combine for 320 horsepower and 446 lb-ft of torque. This is an increase over the single-motor, rear-wheel drive EV6’s 225 horsepower and 258 lb-ft, and it drops the range from that car’s 310 miles down to 274 miles.

A 77.4-kWh lithium-ion battery supplies the 74-kW front electric motor and 165-kW rear electric motor. DC fast charging is 800 volts on a 350-kW charger, allowing for 70 miles of charge in under 5 minutes and 10 percent to 80 percent charge in about 18 minutes. Plug into a Level 2 240V AC charger and Kia says you’ll go from 10 percent to 100 percent in 7 hours, 10 minutes.

As most EVs are, the GT-line is quick with power available from zero. Passing and merging are no problem, and while the EV6 GT provides plenty of thrills, the GT-Line will do well enough for most situations.

It’s a sharp handler, too, and ride-wise it’s compliant enough around town to be a fine commuter. Like its Ioniq 5 brethren, the EV6 GT-Line is a nice blend of sport and comfort, though it feels like the Sportier of the two platform-mates.

It also looks like the sportier of the two, thanks to a swooping fastback exterior with a roof that slopes downward from fore to aft. Inside, the cabin is minimalist, with screens in front of the driver and atop the center stack, and Kia’s fast-becoming-familiar audio/HVAC controls that switch between functions with one button press. Otherwise, knobs and buttons are relatively scarce. As per usual with Kia, you get UVO infotainment – the system remains one of the better ones on the market.

Standard features include those two screens – both are 12.3 inches – along with 20-inch wheels, Meridian audio, satellite radio, Android Auto, Apple CarPlay, navigation, keyless entry and starting, adaptive cruise control, power tailgate, dual-zone climate control, augmented-reality head-up display, wireless phone charging, heated and cooled front seats, heated steering wheel, and heated outboard rear seats.

Safety nannies/ninnies include forward collision-avoidance assist, blind-spot collision-avoidance assist, rear cross-traffic collision-avoidance assist, lane-keeping assist and lane-following assist, park distance warning, parking collision-avoidance assist (reverse), safe exit assist and highway driving assist, and remote smart parking assist.

The base price was $55,900 and the only option was suede inserts for the seats ($295). With the $1,215 destination fee, the as-tested price was $57,410.

Therein lies the biggest problem here – like so many other EVs, the Kia EV6 GT-Line commands a premium price. And it’s not that much more money for the scary-good EV6 GT. Some buyers will undoubtedly climb the next rung in the Kia EV ladder.

Kia’s also fighting the similarly priced Mustang Mach-E as well as a whole host of internal-combustion vehicles that fit in the sport and/or luxury categories.

That said, if you don’t want or need the GT’s power, you have the necessary coin, and you want to go electric, the EV6 GT-Line is a solid choice. Especially if the Ioniq 5’s style isn’t sporty enough.

The EV future is much better than I once imagined, and the Kia EV6 GT-Line is one of several reasons why.

If this is one of the mainstream EVs of the future, we’re in good hands.

[Images © 2022 Tim Healey/TTAC]

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